Ocean's Eleven
A Remake of Ocean's 11 (1960)

Steven Soderbergh is on a hot streak. A case can be made that he's currently the most successful Steven in Hollywood (yes, surpassing even Mr. Spielberg). Erin Brockovich was a great movie with fantastic performances. Traffic was an exemplary example of just the right combination of style and story. Ocean's Eleven is quite different than Soderbergh's previous two outings. It doesn't try to be a personal biography of some popular figure or an examination into a pressing cultural issue. Ocean's Eleven just tries to have fun. It's main purpose is not to educate or to amaze. It was created to put a smile on your face. It succeeds almost whole heartedly.

Being such an in-demand director has its definite perks, like being able to recruit just about any actor you want for any role. Or, as is the case with Soderbergh, he just waits for them to call him. He's the kind of director who is easy to work with, is incredibly talented, knows exactly what he wants, and is able to make you look good. One of Soderbergh's gifts is his ability to derive great performances from all his actors, not just the headliners. It is in this way that Matt Damon, Elliot Gould, Don Cheadle, Casey Affleck, Scott Caan, and Carl Reiner turn out to look so good. Their parts aren't big, but they're memorable. Brad Pitt, Andy Garcia, George Clooney, and Julia Roberts run the show, but the supporting cast really makes the cast stand out from just about every film I've ever seen.

It's obvious that each cast member is having loads of fun with their role. They chew on their dialogue and spit it out with biting sarcasm, a gentle smirk, or with looks of incredulousness. Their cheerful delivery of dialogue keeps everything they say interesting. But, of course, the acting isn't the only thing going for the film. Soderbergh has shot it with an abundance of Las Vegas flavor. The glitz, the crowds, the lights, the money, the crystalline appearance of the desert city are all captured magnificently by Soderbergh (he's his own Director of Photography).

Ocean's Eleven is exactly what the multiplex needs. It's a film that doesn't have ulterior motives. It's only supposed to be fun, plain and simple. And, as expected, Soderbergh's hot streak continues. Here's hoping it goes longer.

On a scale of 1 to 10 flexible circus performers : 7